Despite the optimistic expectations of an incoming altcoin season driven by more crypto-friendly regulations in 2025, artificial intelligence (AI) cryptocurrencies have shed nearly one-third of their cumulative value.
Market Capitalization and Trading Volume Decline
The cumulative market capitalization of AI cryptocurrencies stood at $50.5 billion as of 7:15 a.m. UTC on December 28th. This is down over 28% from their peak of $70.4 billion recorded on December 7th, according to data from CoinMarketCap.
| Date | Cumulative Market Capitalization |
| — | — |
| Dec 7 | $70.4 billion |
| Dec 28 | $50.5 billion |
The decline in market capitalization is accompanied by a decrease in cumulative trading volume around AI tokens. The trading volume has fallen nearly 11% during the past month to the current $4.73 billion, suggesting that trader interest in AI cryptocurrencies decreased.
Market Trend and Altcoin Season Expectations
The near 30% drop in AI-based cryptos occurred during a wider crypto market downtrend, which saw Bitcoin’s price experience an over 14% correction from its all-time high of above $108,000 on December 17th. According to data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro, the current market trend is showing signs of recovery.
| Date | BTC Price |
| — | — |
| Dec 17 | $108,000 |
| Dec 28 | $92,500 |
Increasingly more analysts are expecting an incoming altcoin season during 2025, which could see Bitcoin profits flow into smaller cryptocurrencies, including AI tokens. This phenomenon is known as "altseason," where investors take profit from their BTC positions and invest part of these funds into altcoins.
What is Altcoin Season?
Altcoin season tends to benefit from Bitcoin’s declining market dominance, which often means that investors are taking profit from their BTC positions and investing part of these funds into altcoins. This can lead to a surge in prices for smaller cryptocurrencies as investors seek alternative investment opportunities.
Fractal Patterns Indicate Altcoin Season
The 2025 altcoin season may start during the first quarter of 2025, based on fractal patterns shared by popular crypto trader Elja. According to Elja’s post on December 27th Xpost:
"A few more weeks before mega altseason…"
Fractals are price patterns that repeat themselves over time, and technical traders use them to identify key support and resistance levels and potential trend reversals based on historical data.
Could Ether Price Benefit from Altcoin Season?
While some analysts foresee an Ether rally to $5,000 in the short term, others are predicting an "impulse breakout" to $15,000 by the end of 2025. The price of Ether could also benefit from the altcoin rally and recapture its previous all-time high.
Conclusion
The cumulative market capitalization of AI cryptocurrencies has shed nearly one-third of their value despite optimistic expectations of an incoming altcoin season driven by more crypto-friendly regulations in 2025. The trading volume decline suggests that trader interest in AI cryptocurrencies decreased during the past month. However, fractal patterns indicate that the 2025 altcoin season may start during the first quarter of 2025, which could see Bitcoin profits flow into smaller cryptocurrencies, including AI tokens.
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